After injury or surgery, physical therapy, or rehabilitation of the affected musculature is important to a patient's recovery. Rehabilitation includes an exercise conditioning program which facilitates the patient's return to daily activities and enjoyment of a more active, healthy lifestyle.
Rehabilitation of specific muscle groups includes stretching, strengthening and increasing flexibility of the affected musculature, which is important for restoring normal range of motion and preventing further injury. This also helps to keep the musculature long and flexible and to reduce muscle soreness.
For example, shoulder injury, which involves the rotator cuff (a group of muscles and tendons which surround the shoulder joint), occurs most often in people who perform repetitive overhead motions in their jobs or in sports. This type of injury also increases with age. Current exercise programs to rehabilitate these injuries typically involve holding a straight rod or wand in one's hands and moving the rod or wand in various directions to strengthen the front and back regions of the shoulder joint. A big disadvantage of using such devices for physical therapy of injured muscle tissue is the stress and/or strain placed on associated joints of the exercised muscles, such as the wrists, elbows and rotator cuff joints, due to the rigidity of the rod or wand, and thus its inability to allow for natural motion of the joints. This, in turn, reduces the ability to fully and satisfactorily stretch the muscles and underlying tendons and ligaments, resulting in a less than optimal exercise routine for injured, as well as healthy muscles.
There exists a need, therefore, for a muscle stretching device that is rotational and ergonomic, while being portable, which can move in tandem with, i.e. mimic, the rotational motion of joints associated with exercising muscles, so that a full stretch of the muscles and underlying tendons and ligaments can be achieved during an exercise program without the associated negative stress and/or strain on joints which typically is encountered when exercising with prior art exercise devices.